CoasterMania 2007

I'm definitely a little sad sitting here at work and thinking that I should be there right now. I've gone every year since 2002, and this is the first one I'm missing out on. :(

I think I saw a few of you in the coffee shop today, but not too sure. I'm pretty sure I possibly saw Adam though. Oh well, off til Sunday, have fun people.

Same here Ralph. I feel like a part of me died.

So how was it, those of you who went?

Absolutly Fantastic! Greatest time I have ever had at Cedar Point probably ever! I got some extreme ridership and will have a TR up soon. It was fun running around the park with people who know how to have a good time at Cedar Point! Thanks Guys.

Ridership (From Thursday at 8pm - Saturday at 12pm) Total 26hours in the Park! Maverick(11) Millennium Force(9) Top Thrill Dragster(7) Raptor(5) and some others!

MAVERICK IS THE BEST! ;)

I had a great time also. Magnum didn't open up for the evening ERT because of some sort of problem so they opened up Wicked Twister instead. I was a little sad about that, but I got three rides on Wicked Twister in about ten minutes. I'm not sure if Magnum ever opened up because my group decided it was time to go after we got off of Power Tower. It was a long day but I had a ton of fun and I can't wait to do it again.

Magnum opened up later around 1130 and they had the ERT open till 1230.

What a great day though.

I probably saw most of you, giving out your lanyards and cups at the front, and trying to stay awake after 3 hours of sleep that night. It was a nice day though.

*** Edited 6/16/2007 11:34:56 PM UTC by Ryan06***

You probably did see me Justin. I was the one running in circles with my friend trying to get our ID's, cups and vouchers.:)

Speaking of said event.......

Dragster ERT was the best! Station wait, Kristy on microphone, Tony in station then later on microphone, nonstop rides, 7 total.........best night ever!!:)

Not to mention that my 2nd ERT ride of the day on Maverick was nearly a rollback and then (after CRAWLING over the top) we get stuck in the tunnel for a few minutes meaning we got to experience a launch from a dead stop!! Which, for anyone on here who has had one, can vouche is very intense.

I dont know how yesturday could have gotten any better. It was a day I shall always remember. It was great hanging with ya'll who was in the group and powered thru the Woodstock Express takeover.:)
*** Edited 6/20/2007 4:45:08 AM UTC by TTD 120mph***

I'll agree with Adam and Schuyler. This was probably the best time I've had at Cedar Point. It's always fun hanging out with people that really enjoy the park and the rides.

Both ERT sessions were great. Huge thanks to the Maverick crew and Dragster crew especially. Thanks to Magnum crew and maintenance for getting it reopened for ERT (it helped clear out Dragsters queue :) )

And I'll have to correct you Adam on one thing, it was Kristy on the microphone during ERT, and she was fantastic. She really kept the crowd pumped up. Best ERT session on Dragster EVER!!!

This was my first Coastermania and I had a blast! I arrived at the park at 4:30am, got my Coastermania badge and then waited at the front gate until they let us in at 5:30am--only to be stopped by chains a bit further up. Right before 6:00am one of the park managers made a brief statement and then the "running of the bulls" commenced.

I ran all the way up to Maverick and got in the front seat of the third train (with the first two being quite less than full). All told, before 10am, I rode Maverick four times, Millennium three times, Skyhawk twice and Raptor three times.

At noon I attended the Q&A session, which featured Dick Kinzel and five others from corporate and park management, and Tony at the mike. It was a great session with some frank questions and many candid answers. Definitely one of the highlights of the day for me! A little before 2:00pm I lined up for the free lunch, and I'm glad I got there early as when I left the picnic pavilion before 3pm there were *STILL* people lined up to get food!!

At some point I picked up one of the t-shirts Cedar Point printed for the event--it's a nice shirt, gray with, "2007 - An All-Ohio Coaster Odyssey" printed on the front, "Kings Island, Cedar Point, and Geauga Lake" printed on one sleeve, and then a list of all the coasters at each of the three parks on the back. They made 1,000 of these shirts and throughout the day I'd see many people wearing them. Not sure if they sold out, though.

A bit after 3:00pm I went home for a two hour nap (I was at the park for nearly 11 hours at this point on only 4.5 hours of sleep), and then came back with a friend (whom I got in as a Coastermania guest) and then we rode more coasters and other rides until 11:30pm when we finally left. In hindsight, I wish we had stayed until they opened Magnum, as we could have probably gotten a few more rides on Top Thrill, but we got to ride it once so I'm happy there (and unlike many of the Coastermania visitors who came from afar, I'm at the park at least once a week).

The weather was absolutely gorgeous, the lines were pretty reasonable (especially for ERT, except for the 10:30pm line for TTD!!), the employees were great (the Raptor crew was super hyper in the morning), the Q&A session was wonderful, and of course the best part was enjoying all the rides with thousands of other coaster maniacs. :) And to top it off, I met some really nice people at the park, further adding to my enjoyment..

Can't wait until next year!

..Al

*** Edited 6/17/2007 2:06:55 PM UTC by AlbertY***

maXaiRaptor said:
I think I saw a few of you in the coffee shop today, but not too sure. I'm pretty sure I possibly saw Adam though. Oh well, off til Sunday, have fun people.

Did he look like this?

http://good-times.webshots.com/photo/2395454250039441377exLdOt

Hehe.

Adam, that picture turned out great. :)

Thats Adam, but the background seems a bit tacky, shouldn't it be like Maverick or Top Thrill Dragster, and shouldn't he be holding a Top Chill Snowcone. lol :)

What a terrific time we had at CoasterMania 2007! Could not have asked for better weather and I so love staying at Hotel Breakers. This year we splurged and stayed on the concierge floor (10th) which I highly recommend if you can afford it.

The park looks WONDERFUL!!! Half the fun of ERT is seeing the park without all the guests in it and getting a good look at all the beautiful landscaping.
Came in Thursday night for Starlight at 5pm and hit Maverick for the first ride of the evening while the wife dined at her favorite place - Chic-fil-a! Waited about 30 minutes until they asked for single riders, which saved me about another 30 minutes :) This is a very good coaster. I will say that if you are not paying attention to what's next, it does beat your head/neck around. The airtime in the inversions and the hills is nice and smooth and I really like the tunnel launch and lights. I cannot imagine what kind of pounding a body would have taken if they had left in the heart line roll. Yikes! To each his own, but I do not see how some people can call this their new favorite over MF, TTD or even Magnum. Oh well, that is just my opinion.

After Mav, I headed over to my first love, Millie. Shortest non-ERT or early entry line I've experienced - 10 minutes. I LOVE THIS RIDE! It is still my favorite. I hit it again later in the evening at sunset.
After MF, hit Mantis (why I keep riding this, I don't know, it always beats me up), Wildcat, and Iron Dragon and then met up with the wife at the arcade. We won some tickets and then she headed off to the beach and I hit WT, TTD and then back to Gemini, Magnum, back to MF for the last ride of the night. Dragster was also only a 5-minute wait as it had broken down and was re-opening just as I was walking by so got in a quick ride on it.

Friday was even better. Up and at the gates at 4:45. Waited with everyone else, saw some friends from past Mania's, and then let all the fools wear themselves out running to Maverick go past me. Don't run, you'll just ride tired! Oh well, got on the first train of the day (yellow) on Millie and what a beautiful sunrise it was. Got 6 rides in before heading over to Maverick for a ride in the back seat. That was killer! Back to Millie for another ride, then just walked through the park enjoying the nice, quiet morning and the beauty that is Cedar Point.
Rest of the day was good, but I'm getting really spoiled with ERT. If any of the big 3 (MF, TTD, MXL) have more than a 10-15 minute wait, I don't even attempt to get in line.

In the morning, Gemini, Mine Train and even Skyhawk were walk ons. Then took a nice relaxing trip on the CPL&E. Nice to see the back of Maverick. Stayed on for the full circle, and then headed back to the Breakers for a nap.

More minor riding and arcading in the early afternoon then got in line for lunch. The spread was very good and the food service staff did an excellent job. We really enjoyed dining with fellow coaster/park fans and just being able to relax in the shade.

Afterwards, hung out on the beach with my wife for a couple of hours, then back in the park for supper at Chic-fil-a, Gemini, Millie, CPL& E, arcade again, one more ride on Millie just at sunset and then snagged a SoBe for ERT and a spot for Hot Summer Lights. Very well done and orchestrated with the music. Ok, I understand the Notre Dame, Ohio State, Michigan and even possibly the Penn State montages but West Virginia? Is there that big of a draw from there to warrant it being part of the show? Just wondering...

After that, headed over with TTD for night time ERT. After they emptied out the station of the peasant riders (yes, ERT has made me even more of an elitist!) they opened up the gates for us and the fellow ACEr I was with opted to wait for the front seat. I've only done that a couple of times since for me ERT is about quantity, not quality. Along with all the bugs splattered against us, it really felt like my glasses were going to bust in two because of the force hitting you in the front seat! Got a great picture on both cameras so I bought it.

After that, headed over to see if Maggie was re-opened yet, and as fate would have it, just as I was walking by they opened up the line so got on the second to last car with no wait. I love heading out into the darkness after the second hill seeing the lights of Cleveland off in the distance and the waves below turning and crashing onto shore! The train was flying and no trims on the pretzel!
Finally, I was going to by the photo from that ride but the guy in front of me was being SO picky/anal about his photo and the way he wanted it "corrected/photoshopped" I gave up and headed back to the hotel.

Completely exhausted but also satiated on adrenaline and dopamine, I made it back to the hotel, walked into the room and told my wife, "Can't talk, coming down" and proceeded to collapse on the bed.
All in all, an excellent day and 1/2 at the greatest place on earth!

Hope everyone else's trip was as great as ours was. See ya next year!

Wow,

Coaster Mania really sounds like the best thing ever. I'm definitely going to try to make it next year. Great reports, guys and gals.

It was my first CoasterMania this year and it was by far the best time I ever had at Cedar Point. 20 hours of rollercoasters is amazing especially with the ERTs. I went back to the park today and it wasn't same waiting for more than 20 min., but it still is fun! I'd recommend it for anyone who is a coastermaniac.

Wow, this year was the first year I went to Coastermania and it was AMAZING!!! I was up at Cedar Point from Tues night all the way through Coastermania on Friday the 15th. Throughout the week, I got in 13 rides Maverick, 19 on Millennium Force, 18 on Wicked Twister, and 5 on Top Thrill. ERT was sooo awesome! During morning ERT, I was there at 530am with the running of the Bulls and went and rode MAverick twice in a row, then went over to the force to do 8 consecutive rides on that to the end of morning ERT. The afternoon after all the ERTs, I wasnt in the park because it was so crowded plus Id been in the park all week so I went and relaxed all afternoon, then came back for night ERT where I started the night with closing down Millennium Force (last train of the night), then went to Magnum and found out it was closed so I went to Wicked Twister and no wait on that so I rode that 14 times in a row!!! I was soooo close to getting a private ride on that too because I was the only one on the platform for a good 25 seconds! If the hurd of people came up the ramp 20 seconds later, I could have had a private ride on that thing! So I closed down Wicked Twister till its ERT ended, then went on over to Dragster and got 3 rides on that until its ERT ended at 1230am. My good friend Kristy was on the mic over there and she is amazing getting the crowd into it...it was awesome! I was amazed how I just WALKED on Dragster 3 consecutive times...I heard a bunch of people left early...me...I would be staying to the end if it lasted all night long...it was just awesome...So I closed Drsgster down as well and was on the LAST train of Coastermania!! I closed down MF, WT, and Dragster this night! I also closed down MF all 4 nights I was at the park..and opened up MAverick a few mornings (2nd or 3rd trains), etc. It was such an amazing time. I was a single rider too and you can get so many more rides in being a single rider. I still met a bunch of other people who are as enthused about coasters as I am...such an awesome environment...an awesome week!!! I will definitely be back next year for Coastermania!

haha yeah, I definitely saw you. but yeah, one good thing about coaster mania...the hotel was nearly full.

lol!! Love the shot Josh!

Oh and the next time you and Bryan decide to tackle me and scare the crap out of me in the process, I wont pose for you any more.;)

And speaking of that, dare I ask where that lips shot is.....Im dying to see that one.:)

Josh you are such a nerd. :)